Charging cameras etc without a battery?
 

Dear all, I am looking at the spec for my next adventure/RTW bike. I've decided on the frame, engine, suspension etc but cannot decide what to to in terms of electrics. Running a battery-less system is appealing but I would also like to be able to charge a digital camera etc whilst on the road - has anyone found a way to charge things other than off the bike electrics that actually works? It has to weigh less than a bike battery!

Cafes and lodgings?

It depends on how long you plan not spending half an hour in either.

A charged camera or phone battery, even without carrying a spare clipped into the charger, generally lasts a long time except in extreme cold.

I ran a Honda XR600 as my long distance bike for many years and as you may know, that's a direct ac system without a battery. Quite honestly it was a pain in the a*se. You couldn't do anything without the engine running - and not much more when it was. I did eventually fit a small battery with a rectifier just so I could run stuff like led camp lights, sat nav etc.

Most of the time though I had to charge cameras, phones whenever I stayed in a hotel. I've tried solar chargers a number of times but in my experience the sizes you can accommodate on a bike just don't work. Maybe the door sized one you can bolt onto a Land Rover or similar might be different but if you're considering those you might as well just stick a battery on the bike.

I have had a bit of success with a small wind generator sitting on the handlebars. The fan charges up a small internal battery which will then power anything with a USB port. It won't charge it up but you can use it.

I'd guess if you're considering simple electrics then the bike'll be kickstart only. I've no idea what engine you're considering but kickstarting the XR regularly on a long trip eventually became something I detested doing. When I was tired or I stalled it in traffic I could quite happily have set fire to it and walked away. Something that requires less effort (smaller cylinders) might have been ok but the XR required a kind of ritual otherwise nothing would happen.

Thanks for the input.

The engine is a Triumph 650 twin from 1967 so I don't think that there is an electric start option. I'd thought about a fan system so it's good to know it wouldn't handle charging much before I found out on the road!

Internet cafes are looking like my best option at the mo.

I must confess to thinking of tea/snack cafes when replying above. Most would have a wall socket somewhere if there is electricity.

But I am not from the technology era!:wheelchair: (more the 1960s Triumph ;) )

I hadn't thought about taking a plug-in charger due to the size/weight and the need for socket adapters, I was planning on using the now ubiquitous USB charger, problem is some stuff takes hours to charge that way...... If I was going to take a netbook then that would have had a charger but I'm trying to keep the packing list as lean as possible so I keep the weight saving from the frame I'm using (I'm aiming for about 150 kg loaded)

A Triumph twin is a lot easier to kick start than a 600 trailie. The kickstart isn't three feet off the ground for a start. Years (many) ago I did a trip to Greece on an early 650 Yamaha twin with a friend on a 650 Triumph. The Yamaha was electric (+kick) while the Triumph was kick only and there wasn't a great difference between them when it came to starting. Good choice of engine if it hasn't suffered from the ravages of intervening time and you're not looking to spend much time on motorways.

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r.../73Corfu-4.jpg

Yamaha on the left, Triumph on the right


So what are you going to do on the electrical side? Presumably you'll be leaving the alternator on the engine and using a capacitor in place of the battery? If it's weight saving that's binning the battery and you're aiming for 150kg, I don't think the Triumph or the Yamaha weighted much more than that anyway. You could use one of the new lithium lightweight ones (under a kilo) and get the best of both worlds.

Nice photo, think I've seen that one before! The weight saving is part of the reason to bin the battery, also it's less to go wrong - a spare capacitor weighs naff all. I don't really know anything about the newer hi-tech batteries (other than Colebatch ran one real low down on his G650 Xchallenge and rated it).

The bike I'm building is basically a copy of a bike that ran a magneto/capacitor setup so there is also a (albeit very marginal) advantage in terms of simplicity!

Good to know twins aren't that bad to kick over, I've suffered in the past at the hands of early Triumph singles, later jap singles and a Ducati 650, guess I'm a glutton for punishment!

I don't like to be negative, but if you're going to such an exteme with weight saving such as you don't want to carry a couple of wall chargers, why not just leave the gizmos at home as well and it's problem solved?

If you do want to take just usb cable chargers, then take a simple wall-plug usb thing as well, and charge stuff at cafes like said - If the charge times are really that long then just take very long and laid back lunches? As well, part charging batteries is not good for their lifespan, but in this case are you bothered? An older phone can last two weeks if barely used. If you keep it turned off most of the time then the battery would last most of your trip? A good camera with a large battery will last a stupid amount of photos as well.


My dr350 was the enduro model fitted with a magneto and lighting coil arangement. I ditched this for a 3-phase alternator (along with the battery and reg/rec). In heindsight I wouldn't have bothered. The lighting coil arangement worked nicely, there is no capacitor just a tiny regulator. Kickstarting a bike numerous times a day is what reminds you that you are a man (and not a sissy girly with an electric start(and unbruised shins)).

solar chargers might work as a back up to cafe charging.

Nath - I am leaving a lot of gizmos such as GPS and hairdryers but have decided a Camera is a must have - in case I ever get round to breeding I'll need proof of my tall tales for sceptical grandchildren......

I've never seen wall socket USB chargers, that might work.

The solar chargers I've seen in use at festivals etc seemed to be a bit big for bike travel IMO

Hi Fern. My experience of solar charging on a trip has been totally negative and I've been experimenting with the things since the mid 90's. On a bike I've set a max size of (roughly) A4 and my current one puts out about 50mA. I've left stuff attached to it for days and it's still been flat (or as near as makes no difference) at the end. Maybe I'm missing some sort of a trick (I do nothing more than connect the cables and put it in the sun) but not worth the effort imho.

"Kickstarting a bike numerous times a day is what reminds you that you are a man (and not a sissy girly with an electric start(and unbruised shins))"

Ha Ha - That's ok on a DR350 where the kickstart virtually falls under its own weight :rofl::rofl::rofl:

Help yourself to an Apple USB wall charger (called the Apple USB Power Adaptor; beware of the ebay-fakes, get it directly from Apple). As tiny as it gets and a solid 1A output, should be around 29$. If you need to take an outlet adapter anyways, use the German version of the apple device as it´s not cubic but flat.

Regards
Chris

If you´re riding with a backpack, get a small flexible solar module to affix to your backpack. Will charge your small batteries during the ride. Stuff´s been around for at least two years, not expensive and working well.

I use this wall charger:

http://images.igo.com/igo/ps00278000.../zoomThumb.png

http://www.igo.com/mobile-devices/us...t/ps002780004/

Fits in the palm of your hand and gives you 2 USB ports.